DRYH: Shadow of the Raven King - Setting Details

In the time of the Raven King, the Mad City is divided into Quarters, and each Quarter is Ruled by a major Nightmare and its various lieutenants and minions. The following section describes each Quarter and details those who might be encountered there, their suggested Pain ratings, and any special talents or attributes they might have.

The Raven King - Pain 12 (15 when using Voice)

The Raven King confines himself to no Quarter. The whole of the Mad City is his domain, and he rules it with a ruthless passivity that is unfathomable. At a distance, the Raven King is seen as the silhouette of a tall, gaunt man swathed in robes of blackness and starlight, and from the vast cowl of his vestments the silhouette of a great black beak can be seen jutting forth. Until he approaches or allows himself to be approached. At that point the great black beak will pull away, revealing itself to be the dripping blade of a great scythe in scarred bone hands, his revealed face a bare human skull, bleached white within the black robes, with venomous green flames flickering in the empty eye sockets.

Only from his throne in the Iron Keep does he wear his full Raven visage where all can see. The gaunt fingers that clutch the arms of that throne are covered in black feathers and end in vicious black talons.

The Raven King only rarely approaches or allows the approach of the Awakened, and he never speaks with them directly. It is said his very voice is death to mortal ears [Pain 15]. Instead he watches from afar, typically interacting only through his lieutenants and minions and rarely bringing his full Pain rating to bear when there is a confrontation. If pressed, the Raven King can open portals anywhere within the Mad City that may lead to any other location(s) he chooses within the Mad City . . . or the City Slumbering.

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The Raven King's Court

The following Nightmares answer to the Raven King directly and faithfully and while they function as his lieutenants they should be treated as major Nightmares in their own right. If the Raven King is holding Court within the Iron Keep, they will typically all be present, but otherwise might be found anywhere within the Mad City unless their description indicates otherwise. Some of the Court have a different Pain rating within the Quarters and within the Black Keep itself.

The Blood Queen - Pain 3/6/9 (by Watch)

The Blood Queen is perhaps first and foremost a Nightmare to Nightmares.

In the First Watch she manifests as a young girl in a short dress of crimson with red ribbons in her blonde hair. Her feet and legs and arms are bare to clap and kick and dance. The soles of her feet and the palms of her hands are gleefully wet with blood that never seems to rub off on anything. [Pain 3]

In the Middle watch she becomes a woman fully grown in a sheathed red gown, red slippers, and long gloves that move and flow on her arms like blood. Her lips are the color of blood as well and her hair is chestnut brown, worn loose with a thin pair of braids making a crown around her brow and bound in back with a simple cord of red leather. [Pain 6]

In the final watch she is a white haired crone, red bones pinning her coif up in a bun, her sagging breasts exposed, and a red woolen kilt covering her nether regions. Blood flows openly from her shoulders to her fingertips and from well above her knees to her clawlike toes, and her parched thin lips are black and cracked. [Pain 9]

In all her incarnations, her eyes are black as a night without stars. when attacked, the blood from her feet flows up to cover her even as the blood from her hands and arms sweeps out to smother whoever would dare her harm.

It is whispered that in the fist watch she is the Raven King's daughter, eager and full of life, while in the middle watch she is his bride, sensual and possessive, and in the last watch the mother who birthed him, demanding and cold as iron.

In court it is the Blood Queen who speaks openly while the Raven King stares sternly ahead, offering neither approval nor dissent, but it is rumored he speaks into her mind and that she does not gainsay his desires.

Special: The Pain Rating of Nightmares who come within sight of the Blood Queen drops two points and remains reduced while in her presence. Only the Raven King and Mistress When, (and perhaps the Keeper) are known to be immune to this effect. Inklings, for whatever reason, add one pain to their rating in her presence and tend to congregate near her unless ordered to do otherwise.

One Eyed Jack - Pain 4 (6 within the Iron Keep)

Said to be the Raven King's brother - somehow - One Eyed Jack is the wastrel of the Raven King's Court. As his name implies, he is missing an eye, the missing orb replaced by a smooth globe of polished emerald that glows from within. Otherwise, the blonde rake, wears tunic and cloak of black and keeps his lower face loosely covered, so his mouth cannot be seen.

Below the waist, Jack fades into restless black smoke that can stretch and contract to lift or lower him nearly any distance at virtually any speed. It is the rare soul that has time to react when One Eyed Jack wills it otherwise.

The Fool - Pain 5 (7 within the Iron Keep)

The Fool is a thin androgynous figure in black and white motley and an oval mask, half black, half white with only a bare rectangular slit for each eye and the mouth. Like many of the Raven King's court the Fool does not speak, but can communicate quite fluidly through pantomime. In certain light, with certain movements, the observer would swear the Fool to be a lean young man under that mask, while in other light with certain other movements, the observer would be equally certain the mask hides a slim young girl.

The Fool is the Raven King's primary means of communicating directly with the Awake when he wishes, though the Fool will often set forth on its own agenda.

While at the Black Keep the Fool is often seen juggling fire, dancing, tumbling, performing pratfalls, and otherwise amusing the court, but by all accounts the Fool is the Raven King's chief adviser.

Inklings - Pain 1 (3 within the Iron Keep)

Made of shadow, inklings resemble children in form but with huge hands and feet and great grinning maws full of shadowy teeth. Inklings are three dimensional in form, but being made of the stuff of shadow they are somewhat translucent, except for the inside of their mouths beyond their shadowy teeth. That is black as never.

Silent as death, Inklings are never seen in the Iron Keep except when called for an execution, but they are everywhere, watching from the shadows and - via the Fool - acting as the Raven King's eyes throughout the Quarters.

It is without the Iron Keep that Inklings are most to be feared. Though weaker in the Quarters than they are within the Keep, they are utterly invisible in the shadows and when they attack they attack in swarms. They do have to leave the shadows to attack, however. Their hands have no grip and their teeth have no bite if their bodies are in shadow.

Only during the Thirteenth hour are Inklings truly vulnerable, taking on the form of mute children wandering derelict. During the Thirteenth Hour an Inkling's Pain rating drops to zero effectively turning them into mere denizens of the Mad City. For better or for worse, Inklings caught in this state within the confines of the Bizarre Bazaar do not revert back to their Nightmare form at the end of the Thirteenth Hour.

Special: If defeated, an Inkling's shadowy substance may be consumed by any of the Awake who then takes on the shadowy properties of the Inkling, unseen and unfelt until the chime of Thirteenth Hour. The Awake have no access to their Discipline dice while the Inkling effect remains in place.

The Huntsman - Pain 5 (2 within the Iron Keep)

The Huntsman is the one member of the Raven King's Court who is considerably more powerful outside the keep than he is within. Inside the Black Keep, the Huntsman is little more than a glorified kennel master. But out in the Quarters he Hunts with the Raven King's own authority.

Clad in tough fighting leathers and loose cowl, the scent of old blood clings to the Huntsman. His face jutting from the cowl is the bare white skull of a great wolf with an eerie blue flame dancing in the empty sockets - a flame that drifts closer to red as the Huntsman closes with his prey.

Despite his appearance, the Huntsman can and does speak, though usually only to his Hounds.

The Huntsman only hunts on the order of the Raven King, sending his Death Hounds out ahead of him, but keeping two at his flanks at all times outside the Keep.

Special: Out in the Quarters, the Huntsman has a terrible reputation. Minion level Nightmares, excepting his own Death Hounds, will avoid the Huntsman, fleeing from his presence for dear life. Lieutenant level Nightmares not of the Raven King's court will viciously and immediately attack him on sight. When being attacked by other Nightmares, the Huntsman's Pain increases by 2 + 1 for each additional Nightmare beyond the first to a maximum Pain rating of 12. If a major Nightmare attacks the Huntsman, he can blow his Horn to summon the Raven King.

The Huntsman's Horn: The Huntsman bears a great hollow ram's horn which he can blow to summon the Raven King. He will only do so under conditions set by the Raven King. It is rumored that his ability to add pain against other Nightmares comes from this Artifact.

Death Hounds - Pain 2 (4 when Tracking)

Large and lanky dogs, pale and furless with bare skulls for heads, the Death Hounds are usually found hunting at the Huntsman's behest, running ahead of him to bring his prey to ground (tracking Pain 4) or at his flanks as guardians (Pain 2). Like the Huntsman, their eye sockets glow a cold blue until they near their intended prey, then they begin to glow violet, and ultimately crimson as they close with their prey. Like the Huntsman, the scent of old blood clings to them.

When in sight of their prey the Death Hounds will howl, summoning the Huntsman.

Death Hounds don't always hunt with or for the Huntsman, however. Packs of feral Death Hounds can be found roaming the Quarters, their eye sockets empty of light, though the smell of old blood still clings to them.

Special: Feral Death Hounds (those not of the Huntsman's pack), when defeated can be sent to interfere with the Huntsman's Hounds actively out on the hunt until the following chime of the Hour.

The Headsman - Pain 6 (8 when performing a sanctioned Execution)

The Headsman is the Raven King's Executioner. When specifically fulfilling his office add 2 to his Pain rating.

Clad in black with a great halberd, the Headsman towers over the tallest men. but where his head should be is only a wispy swirl of white fire with empty pockets of blackness where his eyes should be. Like many of the Raven King's Court, the Executioner does not speak.

In the performance of his duties, the Headsman commands the Inklings of the Fool to be his hands in the dark, holding fast the sentenced and adding to the pain he is able to wield in that moment.

The Headsman is almost exclusively encountered at the Raven King's shoulder awaiting an order of execution.

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Quarter: Paradox Square

Surrounded by the Labyrinth on two sides and the Hammerwall on the third, Paradox Square lies at the very heart of the Mad City. Occupied by the massive tower of the Iron Keep, the demesne of the Raven King himself, Paradox Square is at once the focus of the Mad City and the black center from which all the Quarters strain away. Yet as solidly as it dominates the Square for the Twelve Hours of the Watch, the Keep fades at the first chime of the Thirteenth Hour and the Grove of the Slain God takes its place in the heart of Paradox.

Whatever the hour, however, the Menhir stand sentinel. Set in the center of each of the three sides of Paradox Square, the standing stones provide the only means to enter the open triangle, though no walls bar entrance on any side or corner. The smallest of the Quarters can only be accessed by passing beneath one of the three massive stone doorways - each of which marks the grave of one of the elder Nightmares that anchors the Mad City in the minds of men.

The Iron Keep

Windowless Iron with three perfect sides, the Iron Keep towers even above the Hammerwall. The points of the triangular based tower each face one of the Menhir on the three sides of Paradox Square, and each of the three walls of the Keep at ground level is set with a gigantic archway that opens to the interior.

The outer dimensions of the Iron Keep suggest that one should be able to look in through one archway and see across an open floor to the other two archways, but the inner space of the Keep is vaster and more convoluted and neither of the adjacent arches are visible glancing through the third from without.

Similarly, each archway enters into an entirely different aspect of the Iron Keep.

It is said that one could travel for days within the Raven King's home and not see all of it that there is to see.

During each hour of Twelve Hours of the Watch the Iron walls of the Keep reverberate with the sound of a distant gong as if heard from miles away, but the sounding Hour can be heard as clearly in any Quarter of the Mad City as from Paradox Square.

It is the chime of the Thirteenth Hour that rings out like judgement, causing the whole of the Iron Keep to shatter, its flying shards vanishing before they fly beyond the Square. Pain 7 for anyone caught within the triangle of Paradox Square when the Keep shatters.

The Gong of the Thirteenth Chime is a deafening shout over every Quarter of the Mad City.

The Grove of the Slain God

With the passing of the Iron Keep at the Chime of the Thirteenth Hour, the Grove of the Slain God appears in its place. A triangular iron pillar grows up where each corner of the keep once stood, stretching high above the Hammerwall with iron branches growing out of the two outer surfaces of each pillar starting about halfway up and copper and brass leaves growing from the branches.

The inner surface of each pillar remains smooth and flat, with no branches, making the inner space of the grove an open triangle.

Hung by chains from the high tops of the trees within that triangle is a massive circle of iron. It is this that chimes the Mad City's Hours. Clearly in the Thirteenth when it is present, from a distance when the Iron Keep occupies its space.

Hung from this disc by chains of adamant a great tentacled beast hands, the ends of its limbs bound high, its spearlike head hanging near to the ground, it's silver blood streaming endlessly into an endless pit bored into the earth at the center of the grove.

Nightmares: Paradox Square

Castellan of the Iron Keep - Pain 4

The Castellan is responsible for the Keeping o the Iron Keep itself, its running, its defense, its upkeep, and the needs of its Lord and its Guests.

The Castellan himself appears as a stocky man in a smart black uniform of military cut, practical and severe. His face is swarthy and dark. So is his other face. And the third one too. Each face is strong and severe and set side by side in a triangle around his head. He has no beards, nor hair, nor ears, though he seems able to hear just fine.

He controls access to the rooms and corridors of the Black Keep absolutely.

Unlike most the Raven King surrounds himself with, the Castellan speaks just fine. Deferentially to his betters and special Guests. Barked orders to most others.

The Doorkeepers - Pain 3 (5 when encountered in Pairs)

The Doorkeepers of the Iron Keep always appear in pairs (Pain 5) and if defeated will vanish in pairs. Guests of the Keep will typically see only two Doorkeepers at any given time, standing one on each side of the nearest door, weaponless, their brown skin covered only by a stark white loincloth, no shoes on their feet. Observers will perceive each Doorkeeper's face as identical to their own. Doorkeepers never move away from their doors. They do not traverse hallways or move into the rooms they guard. They can, however, use any doorway as a portal to any other doorway within the Iron Keep.

Only when attacked by a Guest or summoned by the Castellan do they move into a room or hallway to fight. [It is in these instances that their Pain rating might be calculated at the individual level (Pain 3) or individually folded into the Castellan's rating]. Otherwise, their only function seems to be to stand aflank their particular doorway or in front of it, granting or barring entry.

Doorkeepers never speak.

The Willow Women - Pain 1 (6 during a Forced Gaze)

The Willow Women answer to the Castellan during the Twelve Hours of the Watch. They are the maids, cooks, and servants of the Iron Keep. But they serve the Slain God during the Thirteenth Hour.

Lithe and flexible and tall, the Willow Women are fair skinned with extremely long limbs and hands and feet and toes and fingers and their hair drops down all about them in a curtain of fine pale braids, like the hanging branches of the willow tree, hiding their faces and most of their form. The Willow Women will not willingly move aside their braids and look directly on a Guest of the Iron Keep or a Supplicant of the Grove and tend to keep their heads down and their faces hidden, but if someone were to part those pale braids, stark black eyes with no color or whites would stare back. Anyone caught in that naked gaze faces Pain 6 in a confrontation that cannot be avoided. In this special encounter all 6s rolled for Pain count towards Madness instead when determining dominance.

Not only do the Willow Women never speak, they have no mouths to do so.

Special: The Willow Women typically do not engage in conflict, but if defeated they (each) add one madness die to the character's next roll, whatever that roll may be, at which time the Willow Woman passes from existence forever. This die does not count against the total madness dice allowed to a character, but any madness dice that come up six during that roll count as two sixes for the purpose of determining strength. Further, any madness dice in the pool when the Willow Women were defeated do not fall off until the end of the next roll. These dice do count against the character's allowed total since they are his own dice, just hanging around for one more roll.

If other characters added dice to help the main protagonist defeat the Willow Women they share his fate on the subsequent roll as well.

The Chainforger - Pain 8 (2 when Communicating Telepathically)

Rarely seen, the Chainforger seems to double as the Iron Keep's Gaoler and Armorer. Fleshless, the Chainforger is made entirely of intermeshed and interlocking plates and chains of blackest iron. Human in shape, the Chainforger is faceless, but flesh and blood eyes of every shape and color wink from within every link of chain in and on his body.

Guests who catch a glimpse of the Chainforger are probably already bound for his special care.

Legend has it that if one were to peel back the great iron plate over his heart a pair of Raven eyes would stare back.

Though the Chainforger shares the Court's general moratorium against speech, when he wishes to communicate, he can make his voice heard in anyone's mind like rust being scraped off of old iron. Pain 2 to communicate in this fashion. It cannot be blocked out.

The Eyeless - Denizens

The Eyeless Occupy the cells beneath the Black Keep. They are denizens of the Mad City, rather than actual Nightmares, and so have no Pain rating, but in their own ways can cause trouble if they think it will inch them closer to freedom. As their name implies, these men and women have no eyes, but sallow amber flames flicker in their empty sockets.

The Slain God - Pain 9 (+ Special)

Hanging from the iron disk in his Grove, the Slain God stares out through three silver eyes set at equal intervals around his spearlike head with intelligence, compassion, and no small amount of madness. Excepting the Willow Women (and, it is rumored, Inklings) no Nightmare may enter the Grove of the Slain God. They are physically hurled away if they assay to cross between any of the three iron trees. But Denizens of the Mad City and the Awakened are always able to enter.

What Denizens petition the Slain God for, no one knows, only that they drop a single item - it may be any item: a broken doll, a rock, a scrap of parchment with faded ink - into the well beneath the Slain God, stand still facing one of his eyes for a long moment, and then walk away.

Awakened who approach the Slain God as Supplicants have to offer more. It is said the Slain God is able to seek that which would remain unfound, but his price to pass this vision to one of the Awakened is a steep one. The Awakened must look into one of the Slain God's eyes; the eye of the Present, the eye of the Past, or the eye of the Future and see what is to be seen. One Madness die must be added to the roll (permanent madness is never enough), but as many madness dice as desired can be added in by the player. This roll is against a Pain rating of 9 if the character has no Exhaustion dice in his pool. Each Exhaustion die in the pool, however, represents one more Pain die added to the Slain God's rating.

Whether the character 'wins' or 'loses' this roll, they see the vision the Slain God imparts. If they win, a Coin of Hope is paid into the bowl without first going through the GM's bowl as a Coin of Despair, and they understand the vision immediately. If not, a coin is paid into each bowl, one of Hope and one of Despair, and they must ponder the vision to prize its meaning free.

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The Bizarre Bazaar

The Bizarre Bazaar is an Aladdinesque jumble of cloth booths and tents and spread carpets and blankets offering all manner of exotic things for trade. Rather than being it's own Quarter, pieces of the Bazaar can be found in every Quarter of the Mad City (except Paradox Square). Once in the Bazaar, however, it springs whole, its jumbled pieces coming together in a cohesive, if still utterly chaotic whole. Characters within the confines of the Bazaar will not wander out of those confines until they actively decide to do so. Though it is still anybody's guess which Quarter they will find themselves in upon exiting unless they have a means of choosing their destination - such things are available at a price. [If determining randomly, roll 1d12 in your roller and compare to the Quarters Table on the Main page of this wiki to determine where your character ends up - Characters deliberately keeping hold of one another all come out in the same Quarter, so only one player or the GM should roll to determine].

Nearly any goods or services can be found within the Bazaar if the Price can be paid. It is thought that the Bizarre Bazaar is the only constant feature throughout all the ages of the Mad City.

[For more information on common details of the Bazaar, see pp 49-50 of Don't Rest Your Head ignoring any reference to the Wax King and his coins as he has not yet manifested as a Power in the Mad City during the time of the Raven King].

Raggle Taggle Gypsies - Pain 1

Mischievous denizens of the Bazaar, the Raggle Taggle Gypsies flit about the crowds in scraps of colorful billowing silks and sashes, never stopping long in any one place, and are ubiquitous simply by virtue of the fact that they are literally everywhere. Though newcomers to the Bazaar might be tempted to worry about thievery, their actual purpose is more subtle, and often more dangerous. Anyone entering the Bazaar with any permanent madness dice are subject to become a target for the Gypsies' antics.

Converging on their mark in packs to gain the cumulative affect of their Pain, the bulk of the Gypsies act as a whirling distraction while one of their number places a stolen item on the protagonist's person. Infused with the bizarre madness unique to the Raggle Taggle Gypsies the rightful owner of the stolen item immediately knows who has it and believes that they stole it.

Special: The First Rule of the Raggle Taggle Gypsies is Do Not Talk About the Raggle Taggle Gypsies. Any attempt to describe these ubiquitous denizens of the Bazaar will be met with amused disbelief and appreciation for a fine tale that might earn a mug in a friendlier place than the Mad City. Despite the fact that they seem to be everywhere, apparently only the Awake are aware of them.

Hagglers - Denizens

More self aware and independent than most of the Denizens of the Mad City because of their lack of a major Nightmare directing the form and direction of the Bazaar, Hagglers are probably the most adept vendors of information and resources available to the Awakened. There is still a price. Always there is a price. But there is little that cannot be had here, and the Hagglers are the ones to provide it.

Clockwork Insects

Delicately wrought of copper, brass, and iron to perfectly resemble and mimic actual insects - flies, roaches, locusts, centipedes - Clockwork Insects can be found in abundance everywhere within the Bizarre Bazaar, flitting about, examining everything, suddenly there and suddenly gone. But it is when they are spotted in the Quarters outside the Bazaar that they are most valuable. If a Clockwork Insect is seen outside the Bizarre Bazaar it means that a hidden entrance to the Bazaar is close at hand. The Awake can use these sightings to escape the Quarter they are in and enter the Bazaar. This does not require a dice roll, merely a willingness to follow the Clockwork Insect where it leads.

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The Thirteenth Hour [pp 49]

Unique Terms

There are some places where the terms used in the DRYH rulebook don't quite carry the feel I'm looking for in the Shadow of the Raven King setting, and I have substituted my own terms for flavor.

• Major Nightmare - Replaces Boss Nighmare

• Denizen - Replaces Local

• Quarter - Is a term I've coined to indicate specific regions of the Mad City. I don't know that they are given a collective generic name in the original.

• Watch, the - The twelve hours that sync up with the City Slumbering are called the Twelve Hours of the Watch. This is further divided into three four hour periods known as First Watch, Middle Watch, and Last Watch.

I've included these terms at the start of the House Rules page and the end of the Setting Details page for convenience.

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